Music as a Mirror of History

De: Robert Greenberg, The Great Courses

Narrado por: Robert Greenberg

In the worlds of painting and literature, it's easy to see where history and art intersect. In Picasso's Guernica or Tolstoy's War and Peace, it's evident how works of art mirror and participate in the life of their times, sometimes even playing roles in historical events. But what about music?

In Music as a Mirror of History, Great Courses favorite Professor Greenberg of San Francisco Performances returns with a fascinating and provocative premise: Despite the abstractness and the universality of music - and our habit of listening to it divorced from any historical context - music is a mirror of the historical setting in which it was created. Music carries a rich spectrum of social, cultural, historical, and philosophical information, all grounded in the life and experience of the composer - if you're aware of what you're listening to. In these 24 lectures, you'll explore how composers convey such explicit information, evoking specific states of mind and giving voice to communal emotions, all colored by their own personal experiences. Music lovers and history enthusiasts alike will be enthralled by this exploration of how momentous compositions have responded to - and inspired - pivotal events.

Ranging widely across the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries, you witness historical moments such as the French Revolution, the Napoleonic Wars, the Austrian-Ottoman conflict, the Hungarian nationalist movement, the movement for Italian unification, the economic ascent of the US, the Stalinist regime in the USSR, and World Wars I and II. Across the arc of the course, you'll see how these events were felt and expressed in the music of Mozart, Beethoven, Berlioz, Brahms, Verdi, Wagner, and many others, including modern masters such as Janáček, Górecki, and Crumb, and you'll hear superlative musical excerpts in each lecture. Join us for an unparalleled look into the power and scope of musical art.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2016 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2016 The Great Courses

Excellent

Excellent course, excellent instructor. Very well put together. I highly recommend this book to everyone,

Thoroughly enjoyed the listen…

I felt like I learned a lot about both history and music. Orchestra-nerd alert: I play the ‘cello in my community’s orchestra. I loved learning the backstory on many pieces I have played in the past. Learning where different composers fit into history was also very enlightening. I also enjoyed learning about pieces of music I was not aware of before listening to the lectures. Being in my mid30s, almost everything discussed happened before I was born. (I know, I know, “history” in the title makes that kind of a given.) However, many of the composers and pieces discussed during the lectures are part of my musical history and a soundtrack to different stages of my life so far. I had an outline sketch and surface knowledge of much of it… however, the lectures filled the outlines I already had with color and meaning in a way that made the lectures very compelling to listen to. It made me want to search out more of Mr. Greenberg‘s lectures. (And hope that he puts out more.) In addition to more lectures on music as a mirror of history that follow different threads of music/history, I would love to hear lectures on how history and classical music have influenced today’s popular music. Or hear about how classical music and history have influenced the music in film. (There was a brief reference to this in one of the lectures…and I found of myself wanting a lot more insights and detail regarding other films and their soundtracks.)

Even though I do have somewhat of a musical background, I found Mr. Greenberg‘s lectures to be very accessible. You don’t really have to know anything about classical music or composers to enjoy this course. And it’s been over 15 years since I listened to any sort of history lecture in a formal setting, but I didn’t feel left behind by any historical references he makes. The amount of research Mr. Greenberg must have done to put together this course is impressive. He has a lot of energy and passion in his performance. You can tell he loves to teach and what he’s teaching about. He is often humorous (...okay, some the humor I would file in the “dad jokes” category...but even those still made me smile.) I wouldn’t necessarily say Mr. Greenberg is an impartial observer of history. He often gives his opinion on how things really went down. However, I generally found myself agreeing with him...so I was okay (and usually appreciated) his proclivity to do so.

Anyway, I’m not really sure what else to write. The course kept me awake and engaged during a few very long drives. I appreciate the work that went into this course and found it thoroughly interesting to listen to. (Enough to compel me to write a review when I’m usually lame and never write reviews.)

Thank you.

Good and relevant up to the 20th century

Excellent lecture for pre-20th century, because classical music was an apt medium of the social climate. The lecture loses its relevance thereafter. I would recommend this being a multi-part series with classical music analysis for pre-20th century and modern genres for recent discussions.

Fascinating History

Fascinating collection of stories about composers from many different cultures that lend insight into not only their personal lives but in how the world around them shaped their music. The selections are not the most well known works nor the composers finest works, I recognized very few of the compositions so if you are looking to learn and discover new music and wisdom from some of histories greatest (male) composers this is for you.

The narrator often tries to make witty banter or jokes throughout the telling of history but it's rarely funny and seems unnecessary, though I've listened to a number of history courses on audible and they can sometimes be rather dry so it was refreshing to listen to someone clearly passionate about the material and making an effort to liven up the material.

I wished there would be more music clips, sometimes the lectures would run on for a while and I'd be like what's this got to do with music? But the narrator does always bring it back around.

My least favorite part was the music clips were too quiet, I'd have to turn up my volume every time he'd play a clip then rapidly turn it down when he started talking again or blow out my eardrums.

Original, thoughtful, deeply moving

Greenburg's knowledge of history and music is wide-ranging and profound. The writing is urbane and literate, his delivery has the rhythm of a musician as well as the nuance and range of an actor. This book is a thought-provoking, enjoyable work on many levels.

Very educational

Robert Greenberg reminds me of those professors at college who always had a full class because everyone wanted to hear what they had to say. Though there is some repetition in bits of historical background, overall this is a very enjoyable lecture series that I highly recommend.

great, informative book

I really enjoyed listening to this audiobook. Lots of great information, and it was really nice to hear samples of music in a historical setting.

Exceptional!

How I wish I had this professor when I was young. He held me spellbound through all the lectures. I didn't want this course to end because I was going to miss him. He made a subject I already love come to life.

Great Stories & Storyteller

Any additional comments?

One of my all time favorite audiobooks. Prof. Greenberg does a wonderful job of making history INTERESTING. Partly it's his way of making history into stories. Partly it's his clever asides. I loved the insights into composers that help me see them as real people, not just names attached to music. And Prof. G's historical stories filled vast empty spaces in my knowledge of 19th and 20th century (mostly European) powers and the senseless conflicts between those powers.

Fun to listen to

The professor speaks in a language I think even my kids would listen to while he opens door and contextualizes music from the ages. It was fun, interesting and sobering.